Petraeus' mistress sent harassing e-mails to military liaison: official [photo of Jill Kelley]

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Source: New York Post newspaper

Jill Kelley (2nd right) is the military liaison who was harassed by Retired Gen. David Petraeus' mistress, Paula Broadwell. Petraeus is on the left, and his wife, Holly, is on the right.

WASHINGTON — A senior U.S. military official says the author who had an affair with David Petraeus sent harassing emails to a woman who was a "social liaison" to military bases in Tampa, Fla.

The official says 37-year-old Jill Kelley in Tampa, Fla., received the emails from Petraeus biographer Paula Broadwell that triggered an FBI investigation.

The official was not authorized to discuss the case publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

...Feinstein said Sunday that she has not been told the precise relationship between Petraeus and the woman who reported the harassing emails to the FBI. She said she has been told only that she was someone Petraeus "knew and was close to." ...

I find it very hard to believe there was absolutely no potential of a criminal matter prior to the FBI's decision to investigate; there are in fact criminal harassment laws on the books in Florida. I guess in the coming days we will find out what the bio author, Paula, was writing to Jill that so upset Jill.

I also think Patraeus resigned more out of a sense of embarrassment than out of honor, if this was his first affair.

And when you have subordinates who surely would have been disciplined or fired for the same conduct at the CIA, he did have to go, IMO.

13. I think the investigation has more to do with national security and to prevent potential bribery

When a high level fed gets in a situation like this there is a potential for him to be the victim of bribery or extortion. And since the mistress in question had access to the general . . . LOL . . . there's a potential for national security interests to be at risk. This is why the FBI is involved. More to prevent extortion and to protect national security then to find criminal involvement. But who knows where this could lead.

5. Do we know whether Kelley knew the emails were coming from Broadwell?

I feel as if the emails were anonymous and that is why Kelley went to the FBI.

I also think Kelley had no idea about Paula being Petraeus' mistress.

If Paula named herself in the emails, and Jill was close to Petraeus, Jill could have just asked Petraeus to intervene (because Jill would have known Paula was the biographer of Petraeus' book). Jill would not have wanted to hurt Petraeus.

28. One report I heard said the emails were anonymous.

7. Federal crime to send threatening emails across state lines...

which is how the FBI got involved.
As to Jill Kelley and David Petreaus, my understanding is the two families are friends. Don't know if anything more. David Petreaus headed CentCom, which is HQ'd at MacDill AFB in Tampa. Jill Kelley is a Social Liason at the base, I don't know what that job entails, but thats likely how the families met. Kelley's husband is a Tampa surgeon.
Petreaus likely resigned to preserve rank and pension, possibly would have lost them in a court-martial. Broadwell likely faces court-martial if her case ends up there rather than civilian court. Probably faces harsher charges and penalties in military court.

9. what about Paula being the social companion of the general at social functions?

I read somewhere, to my surprise, that this bio author, Paula, sometimes accompanied
the general to social functions (I would have thought the general's wife did that).

Maybe there was some disagreement between Paula and Jill about who should get what invitation to some
social event or something like that? With Jill thinking the wife Holly should come, and Paula demanding she, Paula,
get her name on some list to attend an event? Something like that?

It seems like that is possible in light of the military "social liaison" position of Jill. Some conflict with RSVP-ing to a
military social event / and who would attend with the general, with Paula insisting it would be her, Paula, and Jill
insisting it had to be the general's wife, Holly.

Why would she forward email to Kelley in that situation, and why would Kelley then forward to the FBI?
It seems to me Paula the author or Kelley would have first gone to the general rather than get the FBI involved.
I am thinking it might be much more mundane a matter that triggered some sort of suspicion; I don't believe everyone
(or anyone) knew about this affair, either.

This woman Paula was on television etc talking about her book.

What I would like to know is when this affair ended, if it did - just recently because of this FBI investigation? Or long ago?
Or, I am assuming, that it's really none of anyone's business, the exact begin and end dates of an affair?

From the New York Daily News, which has another, different photo of Jill Kelley:

The mystery woman who blew the lid off former CIA Director David Petraeus’ career-ending affair is also tied to the military — a sexy social liaison for an Air Force base in Tampa who says she and the ex-general are just “friends.”

Jill Kelley, 37, a married mother of three from the Gulf Coast city, alerted the FBI several months ago after receiving emails from Petraeus’ alleged mistress, biographer Paula Broadwell, warning the stunning Tampa socialite to “stay away from” the spymaster, according to sources with knowledge of the messages.

The raven-haired Kelley, who has an unpaid position as a social planner for MacDill Air Force Base, insisted in a statement Sunday her relationship with the retired four-star general and ex-CIA director was platonic, dating to when Petraeus ran the U.S. Central Command from the base.

...But Broadwell’s father said Sunday his daughter is the victim of character assassination and implied the bombshell story is just a smoke screen for something bigger.

“This is about something else entirely, and the truth will come out,” Broadwell’s dad, Paul Krantz, told the Daily News outside his home in Bismarck, N.D....

17. Speaking of which re FL

You know, I have to laugh when people talk about Republicans wanting "smaller" government - which state had the LONGEST ballot,
with MORE potential new laws; which state is constantly passing a truckload of new "laws" in the south? It's GOP Florida. So -- what "small" government?
They expand regulation after regulation down there. Those GOP lawmakers never stop. Or slow down.

18. The FBI was investigating the Benghazi attack from the beginning. It happened 2 months ago tonight.

The FBI investigation regarding Paula Broadwell has been going on for a couple of months. Now I hear the FBI found classified information on her computer. I find it hard to believe that all of it isn't in the same milieu.

33. Gasparilla

Tampa's version of Mardi Gras. Allows all the rich bankers and business men to dress as pirates and "invade" and take over Tampa. Gives them an excuse to start drinking at 7:am and walk the streets shooting off blanks and mini cannons. Beads and women flashing for beads is part of the "tradition".

23. My 2 cents...

To me, this isn't as cloak and dagger as people are speculating. The woman in question, who recieved the emails, is a U.S. State Department liaison to the military's Joint Special Operations Command.

With my knowledge and understanding of the senior levels of government, it makes little sense to me that this woman would initiate an FBI investigation if she were "intimately" involved with Patreaus. It would be political suicide. Additionally, if there was some kind of cover up over Benghazi, the very LAST thing a State Department liaison would subject herself to is an FBI investigation.

IMHO - this Broadwell woman was well off the jealousy cliff and made a huge mistake threatening a State Department liaison to the Joint Special Ops Command. Seriously? I would not, in any shape or form, send someone with a connection to this agency ANY type of threatening message to.

From what I have read, Broadwell sent harassing messages to Ms. Kelley "anonymously" but after contacting the FBI, the messages were traced back to Broadwell. That led to the connection to Petreaus.

I don't believe there is some grand conspiracy here.

Two things:

1. I would like to know the contents of the emails.

and...

2. I want to know if anyone else thinks that "Broadwell" and her book "All In" are both unfortunate names considering the circumstances.

26. The woman who received the emails doesn't even have a paid job - she is a volunteer

According to the NY Daily News:

... The mystery woman who blew the lid off former CIA Director David Petraeus’ career-ending affair is also tied to the military — a sexy social liaison for an Air Force base in Tampa who says she and the ex-general are just “friends.”

Jill Kelley, 37, a married mother of three from the Gulf Coast city, alerted the FBI several months ago after receiving emails from Petraeus’ alleged mistress, biographer Paula Broadwell, warning the stunning Tampa socialite to “stay away from” the spymaster, according to sources with knowledge of the messages.

The raven-haired Kelley, who has an unpaid position as a social planner for MacDill Air Force Base,insisted in a statement Sunday her relationship with the retired four-star general and ex-CIA director was platonic, dating to when Petraeus ran the U.S. Central Command from the base....